Tokyo Snow Marks 1st Time White Stuff Has Fallen In November Since 1962

For the first time in 54 years, snow has fallen over Tokyo in November.

The snow began falling just after dawn on Thursday, just before the start of the business day in the Japanese capital. The cold air mass responsible for the historic weather also brought snow to parts of eastern Japan, including Yamanashi and Nagano prefectures.

Commuters did encounter some traffic disruptions and public transportation delays. The Japan Times reports an increase in demand for heating also caused a spike in electricity use.

According to the Associated Press, it’s the earliest "hatsuyuki” — the Japanese word for “first snow” — in the winter season since Dec. 6, 1987.

Tokyo last saw snow in November in 1962.

People walk on the street in Shinjuku ward on Nov. 24 as first snowflakes are seen in downtown Tokyo downtown. (Photo: David Mareuil/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

A visitor takes a photo in the snow at the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura, near Tokyo on Nov. 24. (Photo:Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press via The Canadian Press)

A pedestrian walks in snowfall in Tokyo on Nov. 24. Tokyo woke up on November 24 to its first November snowfall in more than half a century, leaving commuters to grapple with train disruptions and slick streets. (Photo: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images)

A train approaches a station as snow falls in Tokyo on Nov. 24. (Photo: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images)

A boy looks at falling snow from a train window in Tokyo on Nov. 24. (Photo: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images)

People walk in the snow at the Hase temple in Kamakura, near Tokyo, Thursday, Nov. 24, 2016. Tokyo residents woke up Thursday to the first November snowfall in more than 50 years. (Photo: Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press via The Canadian Press)

A shrine maiden walks in the snow at the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura, near Tokyo on Nov. 24. (Photo: Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press via The Canadian Press)